To provide political impetus and strategic direction to the India-EU Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal would be in Brussels from Monday for a series of meetings with leaders of the 27-member trade bloc. “The visit comes at a crucial stage in the ongoing India-EU Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations, as both sides intensify efforts to conclude a comprehensive, balanced and mutually beneficial trade agreement at the earliest,” the Ministry of Commerce and Industry said.
Discussions are expected to focus on key areas of the proposed FTA, including market access, non-tariff measures and regulatory cooperation. The visit will also serve to review progress made so far and identify areas requiring further convergence.
The visit and meetings scheduled for Monday and Tuesday reflect a decision by both sides to remain continuously engaged rather than resorting to formal rounds of negotiations followed by lengthy interruptions.
Both sides had set December this year as the deadline to conclude FTA negotiations. Continued engagement at negotiator and political level at this stage will help meet this deadline.
This deadline was set in February during the visit to India of the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyan with the entire college of commissioners.
Goyal’s visit builds on the momentum generated by the 14th round of FTA talks held earlier this month, the statement added. During the visit, high-level talks with the Executive Vice-President and European Trade Commissioner of the European Union, Maroš Šefčovič, are planned.
Goyal’s engagements in Brussels will include a bilateral meeting with Commissioner Šefčovič followed by a working dinner, during which the two leaders are expected to reaffirm their shared ambition to strengthen the trade and economic partnership between India and the EU.
Last week, the EC Council had adopted the EU-India strategic roadmap. It is expected to be formally adopted by both sides at the EU-India summit in early 2026. The new agenda centers around greater cooperation in trade and investment, technology and defence, connectivity and climate action.
Negotiations on the India-EU FTA began in June 2022. The FTA covers 23 policy areas or chapters, including trade in goods, trade in services, investment, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, technical barriers to trade, trade remedies, rules of origin, customs and trade facilitation, competition, trade defense, government procurement, dispute resolution, property rights intellectual property, geographical indications and sustainable development. Agreement on six of these chapters has already been reached.
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